HOSPITALITY DESIGN INSIGHTS

Art Deco history began at the 1925 Paris Exposition: its modern-only rule, Ruhlmann's pavilion, Lalique glass, Melnikov, and how the style spread and faded.

What qilou are: the arcaded shophouses of southern China, from Singapore's five-foot way to Guangzhou's 1912 street rules and their decline.

Tadao Ando, the self-taught Osaka architect: his exposed concrete, the Church of the Light, the Water Temple, Naoshima and the 1995 Pritzker Prize.

Chef Ross Shonhan's path from Nobu and Zuma to Bone Daddies ramen in London and warayaki grills in Dubai, set against Japanese dining's growth abroad.

How linen is made from flax, from 30,000-year-old fibres in Georgia and Egyptian royal linen to Flemish retting, Belfast mills and Europe's flax belt.

Spanish wrought iron explained: the Catalan forge, the rejeros and the cathedral rejas of Seville, Granada and Valladolid, through to Gaudí's Casa Vicens.

Amman limestone explained: the Cretaceous and Eocene stone quarried from Ma'an to Ajlun, its tubzeh and musamsam finishes and the rules behind its façades.

Yakusha-e kabuki actor prints, from Torii school theatre signboards and Edo playbills to Sharaku, Kunisada, Osaka kamigata-e and the 20th-century poster.

Post-and-beam framing explained: medieval crucks and box frames, half-timbering, Horyu-ji, New England houses, balloon framing and mass timber.

Mason jar history, from Nicolas Appert and John Landis Mason's 1858 patent to Ball, Kerr, USDA canning guidance and the jar's use as a drinking glass.

The open kitchen, from Escoffier's hidden Savoy brigade and the diner counter to Spago in 1982, plus how designers plan it and what research shows.

How restaurant wine walls store and display wine, from storage temperature and light to Champagne's chalk cellars, Bordeaux chais and Aureole's wine tower.

A history of the sky bar, from New York's 1890s roof gardens and the 1934 Rainbow Room to revolving restaurants and Asia's hotel sky bars.

The history of the hotel bar, from New York’s Waldorf and the Savoy’s American Bar to the Raffles Long Bar, the King Cole Bar and Bemelmans Bar.

Wellness tourism traced from Roman Bath and the Great Spa Towns of Europe to Japan's onsen, Rancho La Puerta and the modern hotel spa.

Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong history, from The Mandarin's 1963 opening on Connaught Road to the Oriental Bangkok stake and the 2006 reopening.

Marina Bay history: how Singapore reclaimed land from 1971, dammed the bay with the Marina Barrage and built the Esplanade, Helix Bridge and Marina Bay Sands.

Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi opened in 2005: WATG's design, 114 domes, 22-carat gold leaf, its conference role and the move from Kempinski to Mandarin Oriental.

Sheikh Zayed Road history, from the 1979 Dubai World Trade Centre and 1990s rebuild to Emirates Towers, the Metro Red Line and the Museum of the Future.

How Muscat grew from Old Muscat's walled harbour and 1580s forts along the coast to Mutrah, the Qurum mangroves, the Grand Mosque and Shatti Al-Qurum.

Cotai, the reclaimed land joining Macau's Taipa and Coloane: the 1968 causeway, the Lotus Bridge, the Cotai Strip resorts, the LRT and island heritage.

The Huangpu River from the drainage works of the Lake Tai plain to the Bund's banks, Lujiazui's towers, the Expo 2010 site and Shanghai's riverside paths.